Protective articles, such as boots and leg wraps, have been developed to reduce or prevent injuries to horses resulting from external impact. These protective articles typically include a padded protective structure that is wrapped around a horse's body part and secured to the body part with a fastener that is stitched, riveted or otherwise permanently attached to the protective structure. Examples of protective articles are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,548,026, 6,662,537, and 7,434,378, and U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 20060064950 and 20070107389, the complete disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.
Protective articles for horses are submitted to harsh conditions that cause them to wear out rapidly. The fasteners, particularly those made with the proprietary hook and loop fasteners, such as the Velcro® brand fasteners sold by Velcro USA Inc. of Manchester, N.H., U.S.A., often fail to properly function before the padded protective structure wears out.